ABL Bio Receives Upfront Payment for License, Research and Collaboration Agreement for Grabody Platform and Equity Investment from Lilly

PRNewswire
Seoul [South Korea], December 26: ABL Bio (CEO Sang Hoon Lee), a company specializing in bispecific antibodies, announced that ABL Bio will receive a USD 40 million upfront payment for the license, research and collaboration agreement for its Grabody platform, and a USD 15 million equity investment from Eli Lilly and Company ("Lilly").
- Secured a total of 55 million in R&D funding, including 40 million in upfront payment and 15 million in equity investment
- Accelerating R&D on core technologies, including expansion of indications for the Grabody platform
ABL Bio and Lilly are currently conducting joint research and development on multiple therapeutic candidates leveraging the Grabody platform across various modalities.
In parallel with strengthening its collaboration with Lilly, ABL Bio plans to accelerate R&D on its core technologies--including the bispecific antibody platform 'Grabody', bispecific ADCs, and dual-payload ADCs--using the newly secured funding.
Sang Hoon Lee, CEO of ABL Bio said, "With the completion of the relevant administrative procedures, including the HSR Act, ABL Bio will receive the upfront payment and equity investment from Lilly. The company plans to use the newly secured funding to expand the indications of its Grabody platform into high-unmet-need areas such as obesity and muscle disorders. ABL Bio also intends to extend clinical development of its bispecific immuno-oncology candidates into combination therapies and focus on advancing next-generation ADC programs."
Meanwhile, on November 12 and 14, ABL Bio signed a license, research and collaboration agreement for Grabody platform with Lilly valued at USD 2.602 billion (including a USD 40 million upfront payment), as well as a USD 15 million equity investment agreement. Based on these agreements, ABL Bio explores a broad range of collaborative opportunities with Lilly to develop therapies from a long-term perspective.
About ABL Bio
ABL Bio is developing various clinical and non-clinical assets based on its bispecific antibody platform 'Grabody'. Clinical projects for 8 pipelines, including ABL301 (SAR446159), ABL001 (tovecimig), ABL111 (givastomig), ABL503 (ragistomig), ABL105 (YH32367), ABL104 (YH32364), ABL103, and ABL202 (CS5001/LCB71), are underway for different indications in various countries, including the United States, China, Australia, and Korea. Following the completion of the Phase 1 clinical trial of ABL301 (SAR446159), Sanofi will conduct the subsequent clinical studies. ABL001 (tovecimig) has received Fast Track designation by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). In addition, ABL111 (givastomig), co-developed with NovaBridge, has presented encouraging data from the Phase 1b clinical trial evaluating the triple combination therapy with nivolumab and chemotherapy in ESMO GI 2025. In addition, ABL Bio is continuously researching and developing several other product candidates, including bispecific antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs).
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